Shadow the Pirate
by ERiN OPPEL
Summary: It's the 17th century. When Eggman, a notorious pirate, kidnaps Shadow's only family, Shadow goes on a voyage to rescue them. But without a ship and crew of his own, how will he make it?
1. The Kidnapping

**Hi, I'm back! My romance fanfic has hit a roadblock, so I've decided to work on another fic. Guess that one'll have to wait. In the meantime, I got an idea for a story about Shadow. I was inspired by the game "Sid Meier's Pirates!". I hope you enjoy it!**

**Note: I do not own anything. All Sonic characters belong to SEGA.**

Shadow the Pirate

Prologue: The Kidnapping

The banquet hall was filled with talk and laughter. The rich and important people of Station Square had all gathered there that night to celebrate the Governor's latest conquest. Shadow the Hedgehog sat with his family, Maria and Gerald Robotnik, at the dining table. Everyone was waiting anxiously for the Governor to arrive.

"Hmm, that's odd." started Gerald with his brows furrowed.

Maria looked at him. "What is it, Grandfather?"

Shadow turned his attention to him as well. He had already being feeling uneasy all evening, but now as the famous professor was starting to show signs of tension, he was beginning to feel worse.

Gerald responded, "The Governor's never late. Certainly not for almost an hour." He shifted in his chair. "I hope nothing's happened to him."

Maria touched her grandfather's hand encouragingly. "I'm sure everything's fine. Maybe the Governor is very busy." She turned to Shadow and smiled. "Don't you worry either, Shadow. On such a perfect night like this, what could go wrong?"

Shadow relaxed, admiring Maria's optimism. He could always count on Maria to make him feel better. She was, after all, like a sister to him, and he would surrender his own life for her. "Hm. You're right." So Shadow crossed his arms and continued to wait.

About a minute later, the doors opened and all the guests turned their attention to the doorway expectantly. All anyone could see at the moment was a silouette of a man. But then the man stepped into the hall and showed himself.

"It's the Governor!" someone announced. Everyone started to cheer and applaud.

The only one who didn't was Shadow. All his previous unease had come back to him. Shadow stared hard at the Governor. Something about him looked suspicious.

The Governor grinned and spoke once the applause faded, "Thank you, thank you everyone! I apologize for my late arrival, but I had some, ahem, business to attend to."

Shadow narrowed his eyes. The Governor's clothes seemed too small for him. And since when did he grow a thick moustache? In fact, the whole appearance of the Governor had somehow changed, but no one seemed to notice.

The Governor's grin suddenly turned malicious. "And now to finish my business."

All of a sudden, the windows around the banquet hall shattered and robots crashed in. The people in the room screamed and began to run around in panic.

Shadow leaped out of his chair and glanced around at all the dangerous robots. _I knew something wasn't right!_ He then realized that Maria and Gerald were no longer at his side. "Huh?" Before Shadow could call out Maria's name, he heard his own being called out to him.

"Shadow!"

Shadow spun around. "Maria?" It was hard to find her through the panicking people running about, but then he saw her and Gerald beside the Governor, and they were being apprehended by robots! "Maria! Professor!"

"Don't worry, Shadow." began the Governor sneakily. He removed his disguise to reveal his true colours. "I'll take good care of your friends."

Shadow gasped. "Captain Eggman!" Shadow now knew why the Governor had looked so different. Captain Eggman, the most notorious pirate to ever sail the high seas, had been disguised as the Governor. But why? Shadow didn't care at the moment. His hands curled into fists and he snarled, "Let them go!"

Eggman chuckled. "Or what?"

Shadow at once charged at Eggman, but a robot got in his way and threw a punch at him. Shadow grunted and fell to the floor. He tried getting up, but the robot continued to attack him. Shadow desparately tried evading the blows, but it was all in vain. He just didn't know how to fight.

"Shadow! No!" Maria yelled, seeing her friend collapse on the floor.

"Get up, Shadow!" Gerald pleaded.

Eggman then said, "Excuse me, but I have a ship to sail." With that, he turned over the table and the candles fell on the wooden floor, setting it on fire. Then he ordered his robots to retreat and then he was gone, along with Maria and Gerald.

"Shadooow!!" Maria's cry faded as the robot took her away.

Shadow groaned and slowly opened his eyes to see blurry figures running by and a yellow-orange glow. "Ma...Maria...Gerald..." he moaned. He struggled to his feet and his vision started to clear. The screams of the people became louder and the room was a lot warmer. When his senses came back to him, he saw that the hall was on fire. Apparantly, Eggman and his robots had blocked all the doors, so the only way out was through the broken windows. Most of the people had already made it out, but Shadow was more concerned about his family.

"Maria! Gerald!" he called, then coughed. The smoke was making him light-headed. He jumped through a window, badly cutting himself, and stood at the side of the cobblestone road in front of the blazing hall. He glanced around in every direction. Eggman, the robots, and his family were nowhere to be seen. Shadow felt his stomach clench and he breathed shallowly in panic. "No...No!" When he realized his own family was gone, fear gripped his heart and he cried out in desperation, "Mariaaaaaaaaa!!!!"

_End of Prologue_

**Please review. I am open to constructive critisism, but no flames, please. Or else the pirates will get you.**


	2. The Crew

**Here's the first chapter.**

Chapter One: The Crew

Shadow finally woke up. It felt like he had been sleeping forever. At first, he didn't remember anything. But when he realized he had been sleeping on the side of the road, everything came back to him. "Maria!" he gasped. He got up, and frowned. "Maria. Gerald. They're gone..." He pictured Eggman's wicked cackle as he captured his family. Shadow's fists tightened. "I can't let this go. I _have _to save them!" He knew the only way to get his family back would be to join a crew. Then, maybe he would at least have a chance.

So Shadow headed for the nearest tavern. He knew he could find a captain there that might want to take him. He could learn how to fight, and then he could take on Eggman and rescue Maria and Professor Gerald.

He arrived at the tavern. He didn't think he recognized any captains, so he went up to the bartender. "Um, excuse me?"

Wave the Swallow looked up at him from cleaning glasses. "Yes, sir?"

Shadow asked, "Are there any captains in here that are looking for new sailors?"

Wave put a finger on her beak and gaze around the room. "Hmm...Actually, I think there is one." She pointed to a tall, slim man with blond hair in a fancy captain's uniform. "His name is Captain Sam Speed. I reckon he just got back from a gold-trade voyage. That's probably why he's so rich. You might wanna start with him."

Shadow looked over at Sam. At the moment, he didn't look so impressive. He was just rambling to a bunch of other people about something while chugging down a big mug of beer. But judging by his trim uniform and gold insignias, he must be a very powerful and respected captain. "Thanks." Shadow said to Wave. Then he made his way over to Captain Sam.

"Pardon me, sir--" Shadow began, but Sam had thrust his empty mug at him.

"Yeah, thanks, go get me some more." Sam ordered, barely looking at Shadow.

Slightly confused, Shadow said, "I'm not a bartender."

Sam turned around. "You're not? Well, judging by how you look, I though--"

"I'm here to join your crew." Shadow explained, setting down the mug. Best be clear and direct to someone who's half-drunk.

The captain looked thoughtful. "Well, I haven't gotten a new slave-- I mean sailor, in a while, so I suppose you could." He began rumaging through his pockets. "Now where did I put that..."

Shadow smiled a little, but was beaming on the inside. Maybe now he had a chance to save his family.

"Ah, here's my contract." Sam handed Shadow a long piece of paper that looked like it had been cut from a scroll, and a pen. He instructed Shadow where to sign. "Sign here, here, here, initial here, here, NOT HERE!"

Shadow's pen froze above the place where he was about to sign, but wasn't supposed to.

Sam resumed, "Here, here, and here. Ok, you're all set!" He took his contract and pen and said, "Welcome to my crew, Shadow! Now go get me some more beer!"

Shadow wanted to tell Sam that he needed to save his family, but he remembered he was now serving under a captain. Rescue would have to wait for a bit. So Shadow went to fulfill his captain's request.

A few hours later, Sam brought Shadow to his ship, the _Speedy Sam_. Shadow had to admit, he thought the name was kind of lame and self-centered, but he wasn't going to complain. He was led on deck to meet the rest of the crew.

"All hands on deck!!" Sam bellowed.

At once, five crewmates rushed onto the deck and stood in a line, looking very nervous.

Looking bored, Sam introduced the first one, who was a young, two-tailed fox. "This is Tails. He's the repair man on this ship and occasional look-out."

Tails looked up at Shadow and smiled nervously.

Sam pointed to the next one, a big crocodile. "That's Vector. He's the ship's surgeon, and the chef."

Vector gave Shadow a weak thumbs up.

Sam turned to a jittery bee. "He's Charmy. He does all the cleaning."

Charmy nodded at Shadow, somewhat eagerly.

Sam went over to a large robot. "This is Omega. He's the navigator."

Omega, the only one who wasn't showing any emotion, only turned his head to look at Shadow.

Sam introduced the last crewmember, a purple chameleon. "And this is Espio. He handles all the weapons, plus he's a tailor."

Espio just blinked at Shadow.

"Well, that's all of them." Sam concluded quickly. "Now, to assign you a job."

Shadow had noticed that Sam didn't have a first mate. Even though he had just joined, he thought that maybe Sam would give the job to him, seeing as a first mate is a very important member of the crew.

"You'll make a very good cabin boy." Sam decided.

Shadow looked down in disappointment. He was about to protest, but thought better of it. Right now, he was just glad he was a part of a crew at all.

Sam then announced, "Ok, gang, listen up! I've found a treasure map and we're gonna go follow it to find the treasure!"

The crew sighed. "Aye, aye, Captain."

Sam put on his captain's hat and ordered, "Now let's get this ship out on the open sea!"

Immediately, the crew began to swiftly get the ship ready for sailing. Shadow watched each job carefully, knowing that he would have to participate next time. Soon, the ship started to leave the harbour. Shadow looked over the railing at the horizon. _I'm coming, Maria,_ he thought in determination.

_End of Chapter One_

**Once again, please review.**


	3. The Training

**As you might notice, I don't like Sam Speed all that much.**

Chapter Two: The Training

"Shadow!"

Shadow tossed in his bed. "Maria..." He heard her call his name again.

"Shadow!!!"

"I'm coming, Maria..." Shadow mumbled, still asleep. But then the voice changed.

"SHADOW!!"

Shadow woke with a start. "Aah! Wha..." He saw Sam Speed glaring down at him.

Sam scolded, "I called everyone to the deck! And what are you doing? Sleeping in!"

Shadow rubbed his eyes, either confused from what Sam said, or from drowsiness. "Sleeping in? The sun's not even out yet."

"'The sun's not even out yet'." Sam mimicked. He stomped his foot. "While you're aboard _my_ ship, you'll follow _my_ orders! If you can't, then you'll spend your time tied to the keel of this ship!" He leaned his head close to Shadow's threateningly and snarled, "Do I make myself clear?"

Not wanting to provoke a fight, Shadow respectfully nodded. "Yes, Captain."

"Good." Sam straightened. "Now get up, you dog!" He turned around and marched out of the room.

Shadow glared after him. He knew Sam was the captain, but he didn't know why he would treat a newcomer like that. Shadow had to remind himself that everything would be worth it in the end; he would soon find Maria and Gerald. That thought motivated him enough to get out of bed and put on his hover boots. He made his way to the deck where the other crewmembers were.

Shadow got in line beside Omega and waited for further orders. He could see that the others, aside from Omega, looked a little frightened.

Sam barked out, "I want to get my treasure before the end of the week! So you better get this ship there on time, or else I'll lash all of you! Now GET TO WORK!"

Instantly, the crewmembers quickly went to do their jobs. Shadow wasn't sure what to do, but then he saw Tails struggling with the mast. "Need a hand?"

Tails let go of the rope in frustration. "Yeah. Sometimes the mast gets stuck and it's hard to get it, uh, unstuck."

Shadow grabbed the rope and pulled hard. After a few tugs, the mast was pulled down and caught the breeze. He handed the rope back to Tails. "There."

Tails looked at him in awe. "Gee, thanks!" He tied off the rope. "Wow, you're quite strong." he remarked.

Shadow shrugged. "I guess."

"You must be a great fighter!"

Shadow frowned and turned away. "Not really." He remembered how useless he'd been when he tried to fight that robot.

Tails cocked his head. "Really? Why?"

Shadow didn't reply. He instead asked, "Need anymore help?"

"Uh, I think I can handle the rest myself. Thanks, anyway."

Shadow then looked around and saw Omega having a bit of trouble. "Hey, you ok?"

Omega turned to him with expressionless eyes. "I cannot tell where we are because my built-in radar is getting interference from other satellites. Captain Speed always expects a specific report, so he feels it is unacceptable when I tell him that I do not know."

"Has he always been like this?" Shadow asked, confused at the fact that Sam would get aggressive whenever his sailors are incapable of doing what he tells them.

"Yes. He considers us his slaves, so he forces us to work early in the morning until late at night."

"NO TALKING!" Sam shouted at Omega and Shadow. He glanced at Shadow and stated, "Since you don't seem to have work to do, I'll give you some work!" Sam dumped a whole barrel of gun powder on the deck and ordered, "Put all that away, speck by speck!"

Shadow didn't want to argue for the sake of not getting anymore work, so he bent down and did as he was told.

Hours went by, until it was finally time for dinner. Sam Speed sat down first and gorged on most of Vector's cooking. When Sam was finally bloated, the other crew members were allowed to eat the rest.

"This food is delicious." Shadow complimented.

"Thanks! Captain Speed never said anything nice about my cooking." Vector replied.

Espio asked, "So, Shadow, what brings you here on the _Speedy Sam_?"

"Yeah!" Charmy remarked. "I mean, let's face it, you could do much better!"

Shadow put down his fork and sighed. He figured he might as well tell everyone why he was there. So he began, "My family...my family was taken away from me by Captain Eggman."

The others gasped and looked upon Shadow with sympathy.

"What happened?" Tails wanted to know.

It was tough for Shadow to explain everything, but he did the best he could. "We were at a banquet in honor of the Governor's latest conquest. Eggman showed up disguised as the Governor. He...he grabbed my family with his robots, and sent another one to attack me. But I..." He hesitated. All eyes were on him, hanging to his every word. Shadow sighed and looked down. "I couldn't fight at all. I never learned how."

Vector patted Shadow's shoulder. "Ah, that's nothing to be ashamed of! 'Course, it's better you admit that to us than to Sam."

Espio added, "Just pray we don't run into any pirates while you're here."

Tails asked, "So how do you plan on saving your family, Shadow?"

Shadow answered, "I was hoping that I could join a crew that'll help me find my family."

"Well you came to the wrong crew." Vector said. "We'd like to help you out, Shadow, but on account of Sam, well...he never listens to anyone's requests."

Shadow frowned in disappointment. "I figured."

"But don't worry, Shadow," said Tails encouragingly, "we'll teach you how to fight. Right, Omega?"

Omega replied, "Correct."

Espio said, "And I can teach you how to handle all sorts of weapons."

Shadow smiled at them, feeling better. "Thanks."

After dinner and throughout the week, the other crewmembers taught Shadow all sorts of fighting techniques. Since Shadow was already strong and agile, it was easy for him to pick up on the tactics quickly. Espio taught Shadow how to sword fight, while Charmy showed him the secrets of the canons. Tails even showed Shadow how to build bombs. He still hadn't learned everything, but he had learned enough to be a formidable sailor. Shadow now felt that he had a greater chance of finding his family.

_End of Chapter Two_


	4. The Mutiny

Chapter Three: The Mutiny

Shadow was exhausted after all the training he had done over the past few days, so one night he went to sleep early. The crew normally had about 5 hours of sleep, thanks to Captain Speed, so Shadow wanted to get the most out of it as he could. He wasn't expecting, however, to get woken up at about one o'clock in the morning.

"Psst. Shadow."

Shadow mumbled to himself and stirred in his bed, but didn't wake.

"_Shadow._"

Shadow felt a tap on his shoulder and he opened his eyes. He blinked drowsily at the figure beside his bed. At first he thought it was Sam, but as his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, he realized that it was Tails. "Huh? Tails, what are you doing?" He really hoped that Sam hadn't changed the on-deck curfew.

"Shhh." Tails glanced over his shoulder at the door. The he whispered, "Crew meeting in the galley. Don't let Sam know." He started to fly out of the room.

Shadow got out of bed to follow, but then decided to take off his boots so he wouldn't be heard. He snuck across the creaky floorboards to the galley. When he got there, he noticed that the rest of the crew, aside from Sam, was already seated at the table. He sat down and waited.

Vector adjusted the brightness of the lantern in the middle of the table and began quietly, "We all know how the captain treats us, right? Well, maybe we should do something about it."

"Well, we obviously can't tell Sam he's being too harsh with us." Espio pointed out. "All he'd do is give us more work to do."

"I say we kill him!" Charmy announced, somewhat maniacally.

But Tails frowned. "Nah, we're good-hearted sailors. It should be a way to teach him a lesson, but also get him off our backs."

Shadow then got an idea. "Why don't we stage a mutiny?" He didn't know what gave him the idea, but it seemed like the logical thing to do in a situation like this.

Omega considered. "A mutiny could be very risky. Yet it could prove very effective if successful."

"But how should we do it?" Vector asked.

Shadow thought. Using the battle techniques he had been taught, as well as common sense, he was able to come up with a plan. "We'll have to work together. Sam doesn't think we'd be able to overpower him, but that's only because he's thinking of us individually. If we gang up on him, he'll be outnumbered." A cunning grin crossed his face. "Here's what we should do."

When Sam woke up, he got dressed and went to the deck. "All hands on-- oh, I see you're all already up." he said, seeing his crewmembers surrounding his doorway. "Well, what are you standing around for? Get to work!"

"Oh, we'll get to work, all right." said Shadow, taking out his sword just as the others were. "We'll get straight to work punishing you." When he saw the fear in Sam's eyes, he swung his sword at him.

Sam took out his sword just in time to block the attack. He started swordfighting with Shadow, unaware that he was being surrounded by the other crewmembers. He felt a sword poke him in the back. "Ow!"

"Over here!" Vector taunted.

Sam turned around, but then felt a poke on his shoulder. "Hey!"

"Yoo-hoo!" Charmy waved.

Sam growled and was about to strike, then a sword lightly scratch his leg.

"Sneak attack!" Espio said.

Sam tried to fight them all at once, but it was nearly impossible. He didn't realize that they were leading him towards the plank. When he stepped on it, Tails flew down and quickly wrapped Sam in the ship's flag. This caused Sam to lose his balance. "W-whoa!" While he was trying to stay up, Charmy stung him in the head and Sam fell backwards onto a small raft floating beside the ship. "Ow..." he groaned, expecting to land in water.

Shadow sliced the rope with his sword and Sam's raft began to drift away from the ship. The crew laughed at Sam in victory.

Sam's eyes widened. He didn't believe he'd actually been overthrown by his crew. "N-no! NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!" was his cry before he drifted into the distance.

The crew cheered and ran around the ship happily. Even Shadow, who almost never spoke or smiled, was grinning and laughing at their proud victory. When they all calmed down, Vector said, "We should get a new captain."

"Someone who's a lot better than Sam." Charmy added.

Tails suggested, "How about Shadow?"

Shadow looked at him in surprise. "Me?"

"Yeah." Espio agreed. "You're pretty strong and tough."

"You're a natural born leader!" Vector praised.

Tails stated, "The strategy for the mutiny was your idea, after all."

All these things were true, but Shadow still felt unsure. He didn't know if he was ready to commandeer a ship and crew. "Do you really think I can do this?" he asked.

Omega answered, "Affirmitive. You have clearly demonstrated the qualities of a good captain."

Charmy spoke up, "And besides, we have to save your family!"

Vector saluted Shadow. "We're with you every step of the way, Captain!" The others smiled and saluted him as well.

Shadow was convinced. He saw that Sam's captain hat was on the floor, so he picked it up and put it on. With a determined look in his eyes, he saluted back and announced, "All right, men. Let's do this together!"

_End of Chapter 3_


	5. The First Map Piece

Chapter Four: The First Map Piece

Shadow easily steered the _Speedy Sam_ into the harbour of Station Square. If there was any hope of finding Maria and Gerald, that might be the best place to start looking. "Anchors away!" Once the anchors were dropped and the ship was tied to the dock, Shadow started giving orders. "Tails, check for repairs on the hull and sails. And add a motor. Espio, look over the weapons and buy a new flag. Vector, now would be a good time to get more food supplies. Charmy, I'll need you to get some paint and wax. And Omega, you're coming with me." He gave out a few more specific orders, then dismissed them.

Everyone saluted Shadow. "Aye, aye!" Then they went to do their duties.

Shadow started to walk into the marketplace. "This way, Omega."

Omega followed. "Aye, aye, sir. May I ask, what are we looking for?"

Shadow looked around as he replied, "A clue." He knew Captain Eggman wouldn't be here, but maybe he'd be able to find a clue on his whereabouts. "A clue to the location of that Eggman scum." He figured the bartender at the local tavern might have some ideas, since she had helped him before. He went inside the bar and went up to her.

Wave saw him and smiled. "Welcome back, Captain." she said, noticing his captain's hat. "What can I do for you?"

Shadow responded, "I'm looking for Captain Eggman. He was here a few days ago and I need to know where he went." He asked, "Do you know anything that might tell me where he is?"

Wave frowned thoughtfully. "Hmm. Don't suppose I do. That Eggman is a clever fellow, so pretty much all of his tracks have been covered already."

Shadow looked down in disappointment. "Oh."

Then Wave added, "Although..."

Shadow looked up.

"Perhaps my husband will know a thing or two. He's a merchant around these parts, so maybe he'll have some kind of idea."

Shadow nodded gratefully. "Thank you. Where can we find him?"

Wave answered, "He should be back from a trip by sundown. You can come back here by that time."

"I'll do that. Thanks." Shadow placed a few rings on the table and left the tavern with Omega. "Let's head back to the ship. There's a few adjustments I wanted to make to it."

When they got back, the rest of the crew was already there. Tails flew down from the top of the mast. "Everything's working fine on this ship! I added the motor just like you told me to. That'll really increase our speed!"

"Great job, Tails." said Shadow approvingly. He turned to Charmy, who was finishing painting over the name of the ship. "How's that coming along, Charmy?"

"The _Speedy Sam_ is no more. What should I now call this ship?" Charmy asked, hovering beside the bow.

Shadow thought, then replied, "Call it the _Black Revenge_." After all, he was a black hedgehog and he was seeking revenge on Eggman.

Charmy nodded. "Aye, aye, sir!" He got to work.

Espio came up to Shadow. "Captain, I've refined some of the weapons. How do you like the new flag?" He unrolled the fabric in his hands and revealed the flag. It had a black background with a red hedgehog skull and cross-swords. "I had to make it myself because I couldn't find the exact one you described."

Shadow looked impressed at the quality of the flag. "It's perfect, Espio. Better than I thought."

Vector strolled up to Shadow with a hammer over his shoulder. "Well, I got rid of that hideous figurehead. Now what?"

Shadow looked up at the sun. "Now we wait."

---

When sundown came, Shadow and Omega went back to the tavern. As they approached it, they were greeted by a hawk who went by the name of Jet.

"My wife told me about you." said Jet, shaking Shadow's hand. "Looking for that ol' Eggman, I see."

"That's right. Do you know where he might be?"

Jet shook his head. "No. But I know how you can find out. Come on inside." He led Shadow and Omega inside the tavern and sat at a table with them. "Eggman always keeps a map of his hideout location with one of his crewmates. If you can find the crewmate that has the map and beat him in a duel, you'll be able to take the map."

Shadow then asked, "So how do we know which one of Eggman's crewmates has the map?"

"That's usually the hardest part. That, and finding out where he is."

Shadow's eye drifted to someone who just walked into the bar. He recognized a symbol on the coat he was wearing. The small man sat at a nearby table and took out an old-looking piece of paper. Shadow could now see the symbol clearly: it was Eggman's symbol. He could also see a red "X" on the paper he was holding. "So much for hard." Shadow muttered, narrowing his eyes.

"What?" said Jet. He looked in the direction Shadow was looking in. Then he lowered his voice. "That's Snively, Eggman's nephew. Real sneaky. Looks like he has the map, too."

Just as Shadow was wondering how to confront Snively, he saw a man accidentally spill his drink on Snively's coat.

Snively responded in a rage. "Hey, man! Watch it, jerk!" He quickly stood up and drew out his sword. "You can't just ruin my clothes and get away with it!"

Shadow's instincts took over. He got up and took out his sword as well. Before Snively could slash at the victim, Shadow blocked the attack with his own sword. By now, everyone in the tavern had stopped what they were doing to watch what was going on.

Snively looked at Shadow in surprise. Then he glared at him. "Stay outta this, hedgehog!" he sneered.

"I don't plan to." responded Shadow. He and Snively began to engage in a swordfight in the tavern. The swordfight took them all over the bar, even to the upper balcony level. When Shadow was about to be pushed off the railing, he leaped at one of the hanging lights and swung to the bottom level safely.

Snively jumped down onto one of the tables and swung his sword at Shadow's head.

Shadow ducked just in time and whacked his sword against Snively's ankles. The sword didn't slice through them, to Shadow's disappointment, because Snively was wearing steel boots. However, the force of Shadow's strike caused Snively to lose his balance and fall off the table.

Snively wasn't finished, though. "You think you're so quick and clever!" he snarled. "But you can never beat me! Hahahaha--" His laugh was interrupted when Wave smashed a bottle over his head and knocked him out.

Shadow relaxed. "Thanks, Wave." He noticed a piece of paper sticking out from Snively's coat pocket and knew it was the map. He swiped the paper and looked at it. The red dotted line connected Station Square to Soleanna, then continued from Soleanna to...the edge of the paper. Shadow saw that the edges were torn and he growled. He only had a piece of the map. "Where's the rest?" he demanded, turning to Snively. But Snively wasn't lying on the ground. He heard a cackle and looked at the door.

Snively was running towards it, holding up three pieces of paper. "I have the other pieces of the map! But you'll never get them!" He dashed out of the tavern, surprisingly quickly for someone wearing steel boots, and got into his boat at the harbour. Before Shadow could pursue him, Snively turned on his propellers and sped off into the distance.

Shadow sighed and looked at the paper in his hands. He was glad he at least got one of the map pieces. And now that he knew where Snively was going, he could chase him down until he revealed Eggman's hideout. "Let's go, Omega." He apologized for the mess, then left for the harbour.

_End of Chapter 4_

**I got the blues, I need more reviews!**


	6. The New Slave

**Sorry for the long wait. This chapter should be worth it.**

Chapter Five: The New Slave

The following morning, Shadow and his crew set sail for Soleanna. According to Omega, who was the first mate as well as the navigator, informed everyone that it would take them almost a week to reach Soleanna, weather permitting.

During his free time, Shadow was training. "Ha!" Shadow said in satisfaction as he sliced a model of Eggman in half. "That'll teach you never to mess with my family!"

Espio closed his eyes thoughtfully. "You have mastered many fighting techniques, yet there is something you haven't controlled."

Shadow looked up. "Really? What is it?"

Espio answered, "Your lust for revenge."

Shadow was taken aback. "Revenge? I'm just delivering justice! I must teach Eggman a lesson." he insited, pacing back and forth. "He can't just take away my family and get away with it!"

"True, but if you let revenge get in your way of saving the ones you love, it will overpower you."

Shadow was about to scoff, but Tails' voice called from the deck, "Captain! Vessel at starboard!"

Shadow put his sword away and hurried onto the deck. He looked over the starboard rail and sure enough, a large and expensive-looking ship was sailing not too far away from them. "It isn't Snively's ship," Shadow began in disappointment, "but we might as well investigate." He grabbed the steering wheel and turned the _Black Revenge _right.

When the _Black Revenge_ got close enough, Tails looked through his spyglass and informed, "The ship is called the _Jolly Chris_."

As far as the strange name went, Shadow could tell this ship belonged to a self-centered and very rich man. "They seem to be heading in the same direction we are. Maybe they know something about Snively."

Just then, the ship fired a cannonball at them. Shadow and his crew were knocked off balance from the impact.

"They're shooting at us!" Charmy cried.

Shadow gritted his teeth and ordered, "Tails! Repair that hole! The rest of you, fire those cannons!" While his crew instantly did what they were told, Shadow steered his ship towards the side of the _Jolly Chris_, which kept shooting cannonballs. Shadow noticed that many of them missed and thought that the crew must not be very coordinated. Once the ships were too close to each other to fire their cannons, Shadow jumped onto the other ship with his sword, preparing himself for a fight. The rest of his crew followed.

Shadow then noticed that there was no one to fight. He and his crew looked around in confusion, but the whole deck of the _Jolly Chris_ was empty.

Then a small, whimpy voice begged, "Please don't hurt me!"

Shadow looked behind one of the crates and saw a cowering boy in a captain's uniform. But he doubted this was the real captain. "Who are you?" Shadow demanded.

The boy shakily looked up at his with fear-filled eyes. "M-my name i-is C-C-Chris Thorndyke."

So that explained the stupid name. "Who's ship is this?"

"M-mine." Chris answered, his eyes darting from Shadow to the others, then back at Shadow. "Are you p-pirates? My D-Daddy promised I w-wouldn't see any."

Shadow couldn't believe that this young kid was the captain of his own ship. But as he glanced at the treasures, he realized his parents must be extremely rich, so there was no wonder why he was spoiled. "Where's your crew?"

Chris looked confused. "Crew? Why would I need a crew?"

So this kid was spoiled _and_ dumb. Which gave Shadow an idea. He turned to his crewmates and ordered, "Take the treasure to our ship." They happily complied.

But Chris cried, "No! Not my treasure! My Mommy and Daddy gave them to me for my birthday!"

"You don't deserve to have responsability for them!" Shadow snapped. A smirked crossed his face. "But don't worry, you won't be very far from those treasures."

"W-why?"

"Because you're coming with me on my ship."

Chris whined, "But I have to go home soon!"

Shadow grabbed Chris by the arm and forced him over to the _Black Revenge_. "Sorry kid. But pirates don't show mercy." He pushed him onto the deck. "So you might as well cooperate."

"Captain!" Tails said. "The _Black Revenge _can't carry the rest of the treasure, or else she'll sink!"

Shadow decided, "Then leave the rest of it on the _Jolly Chris_ and we'll sink it."

Chris gasped. "Not my ship!"

Shadow steered his ship away from Chris' and ordered, "Now, fire!" A cannonball was critically shot at the _Jolly Chris_ and the vessel began to sink quickly. Shadow turned his attention to a crestfallen Chris. "You should be glad I didn't let you go down with it. Now then, get rid of those clothes; I'm your Captain now. You shall be the ship's cabin boy."

"But my Daddy says--"

"I don't care what anyone says: _you're_ gonna listen to _me_ from now on." Shadow said firmly. "And if you don't comply, I'll have to flog you."

Chris' eyes widened. "I'll comply! I'll comply!"

Shadow nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Now get to work."

Espio handed Chris a cabin boy outfit and Charmy gave him a broom.

Shadow looked at the new treasures they aquired as they continued to sail on. He was deciding what towns would be most willing to buy them, when Omega came up to him.

"Captain?"

"Yes, Omega?" Shadow responded, picking up a large diamond and examining it closely.

Omega said, "If I may point out, you are treating Chris like how Sam treated us when he was still captain."

Shadow put down the diamond and explained, "I know it seems like that, but I'm only being harsh to toughen him up. He's a spoiled whimp who doesn't have any skills. But I promise that when he finally shows some backbone, I'll ease up on him."

"I understand, Captain."

Shadow leaned over the railing and stared at the setting sun. He hoped it wouldn't be long before he'd find Maria and Gerald. But he couldn't let himself get distracted again, or else it might be too late.

_End of Chapter 5_


	7. The Treasure of Soleanna

Chapter Six: The Treasure of Soleanna

"Land ho!" Tails announced the next morning. "Soleanna is dead ahead!"

"Good work, everyone!" Shadow congratulated. "Well, except for _Chris_." Shadow then stepped toward the cowering Chris. "So, I've learned that Soleanna would pay lots of rings for treasure, and even _more_ for _spices_!"

"No! Not the Thorndyke Spices!" Chris pleaded.

"You already work for me, so there'll be no more begging!" Shadow scolded. "Anyway, I also know that Soleanna's food is bountiful, so we can stock up on food for a low price."

"Captain Shadow, there's something else." Espio spoke up.

"What is it?" Shadow asked.

"You know back when Sam Speed was our captain, and he had a treasure map?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, the treasure on the map was supposed to be here in Soleanna."

"Really? It does say that?" Shadow said as he took out the treasure map from his pocket and looked over it.

"You had the treasure map all this time?" Vector asked.

"Of course. I couldn't just leave it with Sam, so I took it for myself." Shadow explained. "And now that I know that Soleanna is the treasure spot, we can start looking for it!"

"That's great! I can't wait to start digging!" Chris replied with enthusiasm.

Shadow glared at him and ordered, "_You're_ going to stay here on the ship and swab the deck until we come back. And if it isn't completely swabbed by the time we come back, then keep swabbing until it's done!"

"Aye aye, Captain!" Chris quickly agreed and immediately got to work.

"Good. Now, I also think that Soleanna would pay quite a sum for _sugar_..." Shadow mused.

"Not the Thorndyke Su--" Chris cried, but when he saw Shadow glare at him, Chris went back to swabbing.

---

Shadow grinned to himself at all the rings he got from selling the Thorndyke Treasure, Spices, and Sugar. "All right, men. The map says that the treasure is in a temple."

"There's a temple." Omega announced as he pointed to one.

"Omega and Vector, you come with me. Everyone else stand guard." Shadow commanded. The three headed inside the temple to find many branching tunnels.

Omega warned, "The map states that there is only one path to the treasure, and any other path will send you 'down to your death'."

"Whatever could that mean?" Vector asked, not knowing that he was walking into one tunnel.

"Vector, careful!" Shadow shouted.

Vector quickly stopped to see a cleverly hidden trapdoor activate in front of him. He carefully looked into the opening and saw skeletons lying on a floor full of spikes. "Yeesh." Vector grumbled in disgust. "That could've been me."

Shadow carefully studied the paths, but there wasn't any clue to let them know which path was the correct one. "How are we going to get there?"

Omega spoke up, "I can assist by using my radar to figure out the correct path." He scanned the tunnels, then pointed to one and announced, "This path is correct."

Shadow, Vector, and Omega went down the chosen path and were relieved to find that Omega was right. At the end of the tunnel, there were an assortment of seven emeralds, though they didn't seem to be the legendary Chaos Emeralds.

"What are those?" Vector asked.

"I don't know." Shadow answered, stepping towards them. "But they're certainly valuable." A figure suddenly appeared between him and the emeralds' pedestle. "Huh?" Shadow immediately got in a defensive stance.

The silver hedgehog in front of him demanded, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

"I am Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog. Captain of the _Black Revenge_." replied Shadow, taking out his sword. "Who are you?"

The other hedgehog got in a fighting stance. "I am Silver! Guardian of the Sol Emeralds! If you really want my treasure, you'll have to go through me first!"

Shadow faltered. "Did you say the emeralds were yours?"

"Yeah." Silver replied, wondering why Shadow had asked that.

Shadow straightened up and put his sword away. "Then they are not for me to take." He started to turn around to leave. "Sorry for intruding."

"Hey, wait a minute!" Silver called skeptically. "What trick are you trying to pull?"

Shadow turned to him and responded, "No trick. I was only going to take the treasure if it didn't have an owner. But seeing as you already own the emeralds, I have no right to take them, do I?"

The guardian loosened his stance, clearly confused by Shadow's behaviour. "Uh, no. I think. But, pirates aren't like that." he pointed out.

"Then I must be an exception." Shadow motioned for Omega and Vector to follow him, and they left the temple. Once he met up with the rest of his crew, he explained what happened and they went into the town to buy food. On their way back to the ship, they noticed Snively along with a group of robots.

"Stay out of sight!" Shadow whispered and he and his crew hid themselves from Snively. Shadow watched him lead the robots in the same direction they had come. "Let's follow him." Shadow and the others snuck after Snively at a safe and undetectable distance. Soon they arrived at the temple of the Sol Emeralds. "I should've known." said Shadow. "He was after the treasure."

"What do we do?" Charmy asked.

Shadow went inside the temple. "Anything to stop him." He cautioned the others about the dangerous tunnels and told everyone to stay together. He led them to where the Sol Emeralds were kept. Unfortunately, Snively already had his robots attack Silver and was about to take the treasure for himself.

"Attack!" Shadow commanded. He unleashed his sword and leapt at Snively, while his crew went after the robots.

Snively fought back. "Grr, you again!"

"Where's Maria?" Shadow snarled, swinging his sword fiercely.

Snively was fast and nimble and he kept dodging. "You'll never find out!"

Shadow kicked Snively in the ribs, knocking him over and dropping his sword. This gave Shadow enough time to swipe whatever was in Snively's coat pocket. He looked at it, but saw that it was only one piece of the map. "What? This is only the second piece!"

"And it's the last one you'll get!" Snively vowed, retreating out of the temple with his damaged robots.

Shadow looked over at his crew and was relieved to see that they were all right. He helped Silver get up.

"They were too many for me to handle." Silver admitted. "Thank you, Shadow, for saving my treasure."

"You're welcome." Shadow replied. "Your emeralds should be safe for now. I don't think Snively will come back here." He turned to leave, but Silver stopped him.

"Oh, wait Shadow." Silver hesitated, then said, "I was wondering, if I could, you know, join your crew."

Shadow was a little surprised. "Really? You want to join my crew?"

"Yes, if that's ok."

Shadow knew Silver would be a formidable fighter and crewmate, but still he asked, "What about your treasure?"

"Don't worry, I can ask Blaze, the second guardian, to take over for me." Silver explained.

Shadow nodded. "All right." He agreed. "Welcome to the crew, Silver."

_End of Chapter 6_


	8. The Super Sonic Boom

**No, I didn't forget about this story, it's just been a busy year. Thank you for your patience.**

Chapter Seven: The _Super Sonic Boom_

"Where to, Captain?" Omega asked from the helm the next morning.

"Grand Metropolis." Shadow replied. The second map piece had told him to go to Grand Metropolis from Soleanna. "Where the Governor lives, north of Station Square." He looked thoughtful. "That makes sense, since Eggman had to stop by there to get to Station Square. And when he did, he probably ambushed the Governor."

Tails inquired, "Do you think the Governor might know where Eggman's hideout is?"

Shadow nodded. "It's possible. I'm going to ask him."

"Why are we looking for Eggman's hideout?" asked Silver.

Shadow realized that he didn't tell Silver about his mission, so he explained, "A while ago, Eggman kidnapped my family. And I want to rescue them, as well as get revenge on that bloody pirate."

"Oh, I see." said Silver. "Well, that's very noble of you, but are you sure revenge-"

"Captain!" Tails interrupted from the crow's nest. "Ship coming up behind us!"

"Which side?" Shadow asked, walking towards the stern.

"Port! No, starboard! No, port again! No, he's back at starboard! Uh, he just keeps moving all over the place!"

"What?" That was unusual to hear. "Is the vessel in distress?"

"I don't think so, Captain." Tails replied, squinting. "I see a blue hedgehog at the helm and he's...smiling... Uh, he just saw me and now he's coming up beside us on the right."

"_What?_" That was even more unusual. Shadow had to see this for himself. He went to the starboard side of the _Black Revenge_ and saw a smaller, streamlined boat with blue and white accents cruising alongside him. The flag symbol, he noticed, was a hedgehog's head. He could also see the name of the boat was the _Super Sonic Boom_.

The blue hedgehog grinned up at Shadow and brought his boat dangerously close to his.

"What are you doing?" Shadow demanded. He grabbed the wheel and steered a little bit away from the other ship. He went back to the railing and saw the blue hedgehog was laughing. Growling, Shadow grabbed one of the mast's ropes and swung over to the _Super Sonic Boom_. Once he landed on the deck, he took out his sword and sneered, "Just who the heck do you think you are?"

The blue hedgehog raised his hands and chuckled. "Whoa, easy, buddy! I'm not looking to fight. I do that to all the ships I come across." He held out his hand friendlily and said, "Sonic's the name and speed's my game!"

Shadow didn't shake his hand. Instead, he put away his sword and started to walk back to his ship. "I'm Shadow the Hedgehog. And now I must be going."

"Already, friend? But we just met! Wanna have a race with me?" Sonic asked.

Shadow turned to him. "I don't have time to play. I have to find Eggman's hideout. And I'm _not_ your friend." He was about to leap up onto his ship, when Sonic got his attention by saying:

"Hey, I know where that is!"

Shadow spun around. "You do? Where is it?"

But Sonic grinned slyly and said, "If you wanna know, you'll have to race with me first."

Shadow was about to protest, then he thought better of it. "Oh fine. I'll race with you. But this better not take too long."

"Take too long? Ha! If it took long to race against me, I wouldn't go around asking folks, pal!"

When Shadow got to the helm of his own ship, Silver asked, "Well? What'd he want?"

"A race." Shadow answered. "Full throttle, Omega."

"Aye, aye, Captain."

Sonic called out, "We'll race to that sandbar over there! Ready?"

"Whenever you are." Shadow replied.

"Now!" Sonic shouted.

Shadow did his best to match the _Super Sonic Boom_'s speed, but the ship was incredibly fast. Soon, it shot past Shadow's ship and sailed towards the sandbar with ease. Shadow slowed down, accepting defeat.

Not wanting to wait for him to catch up, Sonic's ship turned around and came back to Shadow's. "Woo-hoo!" Sonic hooted. "I knew I'd win!"

"If you knew you were going to win, why'd you race me?" Shadow asked.

"It gets pretty boring out at sea by myself, so I like to challenge ships I meet." answered Sonic.

"How'd you get your ship to move that fast?" Shadow wanted to know.

Sonic grinned and answered, "The _Super Sonic Boom_ is small, lightweight, and is equipped with motors and propellers. Plus, I'm not carrying anything besides myself and a few crates of chilidogs."

"That makes sense." commented Shadow. "Maybe I should get my ship upgraded." More to himself he added, "Then I could find Maria sooner."

"Well, thanks for racing with me. Good luck on your quest!" Sonic was about to sail away, when Shadow said:

"Hey, wait! You were going to tell me where Eggman's hideout is!"

Sonic stopped and looked up at Shadow. "Oh yeah! I was. The location of Eggman's secret hideout is..."

Shadow waited expectantly.

"A secret!"

"Wh-what?"

Sonic cackled, "Sorry, I just said I knew where it was to get you to race me. See ya!" He steered his ship away from Shadow's and sailed swiftly into the distance, leaving Shadow staring in shock after him.

"Uh...Captain?" Tails said cautiously.

Shadow continued to stare in the direction Sonic's ship left, then his fists clenched and he snarled, "CURSE THAT HEDGEHOG!"

Espio went up to him and said calmly, "Remember to control your anger, Captain."

Shadow forced himself to take deep breaths and eventually relaxed. "Thanks, Espio. I just can't believe he tricked me like that."

Vector came over and patted him on the back. "What you need now is some lunch. Come down to the galley, everyone!" The crew excitedly went to the galley to eat.

Shadow followed them and muttered, "I just hope I never see that blue hedgehog ever again."

_End of Chapter 7_


	9. The Governor's Daughter

**I hope you don't mind a bit of romance sneaking into this story...**

Chapter Eight: The Governor's Daughter

Once Shadow and his crew arrived at Grand Metropolis the following afternoon, they went straight to the Governor. "I hope he's there." Shadow said as they walked up to the front door of the mansion. He rang the bell and waited.

A butler opened the door. "Can I help you?" he asked in a stern tone.

Shadow replied, "Yes. I would like to see the Governor, please."

The butler sighed. "Very well. Come in." He opened the door for the rest of them and led them to the Governor's office. He knocked on the door. "Sir? There are visitors who wish to see you."

"Send them in, Mr. Tanaka."

Shadow stepped into the room first. He saw the Governor, a big man wearing a dark gray suit, sitting at a desk, and he went up to him. "Excuse me, sir, but I was wondering if you could help me."

The Governor looked up at him. "Do I know you from someplace?"

"Perhaps. I am Shadow the Hedgehog, one of Professor Gerald's creations." Shadow answered.

The Governor now looked like he remembered. "Ah, yes, Shadow! Maria's friend. It's a pity she and the professor were kidnapped. So, what can I do for you?"

"Wait, you knew about their kidnapping?"

"Of course!" The Governor explained, "The night of the banquet, I was getting ready to go, when Eggman broke in, took my suit and locked me in the closet. He let me out when he returned my clothes, but I nor none of my men could stop him from escaping. Gerald is one of my closest friends, so I soon learned of his kidnapping."

"And you didn't try to find Eggman to save him?"

The Governor shrugged. "A rescue mission is nearly impossible. No one knows where Eggman's hideout is, and besides, Eggman doesn't usually let his prisoners last for very long."

Shadow's heart clenched. Was he too late? "But, why did he kidnap them in the first place?"

The Governor looked down wearily. "Hm. I don't know. All we can do is accept the inevitable."

Shadow glared at the Governor and pounded his fist on his desk. "Accept the inevitable?" he repeated. "This is my family we're talking about! I am _not_ going to let some dirtbag pirate do what he wants with them!"

"Shadow, I understand your concerns, but-"

"No you don't!" Shadow felt close to tears. He couldn't believe the Governor wouldn't help him. Aside from his crew, he was completely alone. Would it be enough to stop Eggman and free his family? "I am going to find Eggman, whether you want to help or not!"

The Governor sighed. "I do want to help you, I just don't know if I can. For years, my fleet has searched the seas for Eggman's lair, but no one could find it. Once, one of my captains came close to Eggman's ship, but he said that it 'disappeared behind a wave'. I'm sorry, Shadow. I just don't know what to do."

"But it might be possible!" Shadow insisted. He took out the two pieces of the map and held them up. "We have half the map! If I could just get the rest, I might be able to find it!"

The Governor squinted at the pieces of paper. "Wait a minute, those look familiar." he noted.

"They do?"

"My daughter found a piece of paper similar to those in a tavern. She said it looked like a map piece."

Shadow instantly felt hopeful. "Where is it?"

"My daughter would know. Why don't you ask her?" He got up. "Come with me. I'll take you to her." He started walking out of his office.

"Thank you, sir." Shadow said gratefully. He and his crew followed the Governor to another room. Now that Shadow thought of it, he did remember that the Governor had adopted a daughter, but he had never seen her and didn't know her name. He just hoped she still had the map piece.

The Governor opened the door and said, "Rouge, dear, you have some visitors."

Shadow stepped inside and saw the back of a female bat in a fancy red dress standing in front of a window. When she turned around, Shadow's ruby eyes instantly connected with her sparkling aquamarine ones. She was so beautiful that for a second, Shadow forgot to say anything.

Espio cleared his throat beside Shadow.

Shadow blinked and said to Rouge, "Uh, we would like to ask you a few questions." He mentally berated himself for sounding awkward.

Rouge smiled at him. "I'll do my best to answer them."

The Governor then added to Shadow, "Oh, but I'm afraid we can't take too long. You see, my daughter is getting married tonight and we need to finish the preparations."

"Oh." Shadow said in disappointment, though for some reason, he was disappointed by the fact that Rouge was already engaged. He pushed that thought out of his mind. He wasn't here to fall in love. He needed to find his family. The Governor left the room and Shadow introduced, "I'm Shadow the Hedgehog, captain of the _Black Revenge_. And this is my crew."

Rouge curtsied. "Rouge the Bat." she introduced in her silky voice. She asked Shadow, "So, what would you like to know?"

Shadow did his best to not get distracted by her elegance. He began by explaining his situation and how the Governor said Rouge had a piece of the map to Eggman's hideout. He was comforted by Rouge's genuine sympathy and felt hopeful when she said that she gave the piece to her friend the bartender at the local tavern for safe keeping. Shadow asked if she could take them to it, and Rouge agreed.

As she led them down the hall, Shadow walked beside her, though a stride or two behind so as to give her the proper respect and authority. He couldn't help noticing her shapely figure and the way her hips swayed with each step. _She's taken! Forget about it!_ Shadow's mind scolded him. A woman that pristine was probably superficial anyway.

As they were about to turn a corner, a large maid nearly careened into them from the other hallway. "Oh! There you are, Miss Rouge!" she said in exasperation. Her eyes examined the strangers behind the bat suspiciously.

"Oh, don't worry about them, Ella." Rouge assured while the maid caught her breath. "I'm taking them to the bar to get-"

"Now's not the time for that!" Ella interrupted, grabbing Rouge by the arm. "You must practice for your wedding dance!" She started to lead her away.

Rouge pulled back with a look of dread. "Please, not again! Besides, Captain Shadow and his crew really need my help!"

Ella kept a firm grip on her. "I promised your father you would not dance like you have two left feet. If it's so important to them, your friends can wait." She glared at Shadow and the others. "But they will wait in the dance hall so I can keep an eye on them. I don't want anyone touching _anything_ with their grubby hands."

Shadow glanced behind him and noticed Vector holding a white vase. When the crocodile heard what Ella said, he quickly placed it back down on the table and looked up nonchalantly. The dirt smudges from his gloves were quite visible on the vase though, and Shadow nodded in embarrassment at Ella.

Rouge was no match for the stocky woman, so she reluctantly let her pull her away. Casting an apologetic look at Shadow, she mouthed, "Sorry."

Shadow shook his head to indicate it was all right. He followed, frowning at his dirty gloves and boots. He really should've scrubbed himself before coming here.

Then dance hall was a huge room with a marbled floor and giant windows. Many other people and servants were scattered around, each with tasks preparing for the wedding. There was an orchestra warming up in one section. Ella left Rouge behind and went up to one couldn't hear what they were saying at first, but then he heard Ella exclaim, "WHAT? … You're sure? … But the wedding is in a few hours! How are we supposed to find someone else?" Ella furiously stomped back to Rouge and told her, "Your dance instructor broke his back. Wait here while we find someone who can dance to 'First Love Waltz'."

"I know that song." Shadow spoke up, surprising everyone, including himself. He looked down, wondering if it was out of place for him to have said that.

But Rouge smiled at him hopefully. "Really? Can you dance to it?"

"Yes, I suppose. I remember Maria showing me a few moves…" The image of Maria twirling and laughing as she taught Shadow the dance made his throat tighten; he missed her so much.

Rouge must've seen the sadness in his eyes because she took his hand and led him to the middle of the ballroom. "Show me what you know." she said softly.

Shadow nervously clasped her hand and put his other hand around her waist. The fact that he had never danced with anyone except Maria and that he was so close to the beautiful bat made his heart pound. The music started and Shadow tentatively began dancing. His gaze kept flickering from his feet to Rouge's face. He really hoped he wouldn't step on her toes.

"You're doing great." Rouge encouraged, her eyes never straying from his.

Soon Shadow felt comfortable with his steps and he kept his eyes locked on hers. He felt his face flush, but there was nothing he could do about it. He just hoped it wasn't too noticeable. Shadow slowed down as the music came to an end and his hand lingered in Rouge's a second after it was over before finally letting go. He blinked, feeling the world come back to him.

Rouge looked away with a smile. "Thank you, Shadow. That was lovely."

"Well, that was the best I've ever seen Miss Rouge dance!" Ella said, coming over. "Maybe the captain should've come here sooner!"

"Whoa, Shadow! I didn't know you could dance!" Silver remarked with a hint of amusement. The other crew mates looked just as impressed.

"It was nothing." Shadow told them modestly. "Just trying to help."

"Well now it's time for me to return the favour." said Rouge with a wink. "How about we get you that map piece?"

Once they got to the bar, Rouge went up to the bartender and said, "Hey, Amy. You still got that map piece I found?"

Amy smiled and unlocked a drawer, taking out the map piece from it. "Sure do, Rouge! Who's your charming friend there?"

Shadow saw Rouge glance his way and he realized she was talking about him. He rubbed the side of his face, trying to hide his blush. He wondered if Rouge thought he was charming.

Rouge seemed to blush as well and she said, "This is Shadow. He's a captain and he needs the map piece to save his family from Captain Eggman."

Amy sighed dreamily. "How brave."

Rouge snatched the map piece, seeming a little annoyed at Amy. Perhaps she was even defensive. "Here, Shadow. Now you'll be able to find out where to go next." She was about to hand it to him, when Snively burst through the door with his band of robots and swiped the map piece.

"Thought you could steal my stuff, eh?" He sneered. "To the ship!" He commanded.

"Now wait just a minute!" Rouge snarled. She grabbed the map piece back and said boldly, "This belongs to Shadow now!" A robot wrapped its claws around her and another robot tried to get the map piece from her. "Aah!"

"Rouge!" Shadow took out his sword and went for the robot apprehending Rouge, but another one got in his way. He growled and started to break that one apart.

"Grr!" Snively didn't want to risk losing his map piece, so he ordered his robots, "Just bring her along!" He darted out the tavern followed by the robots. What he didn't know was that Rouge had dropped the map piece before the robots took her away.

Shadow picked up the map piece, shoved it at Vector and said, "I'm going after them!"

"What?" Vector looked at him strangely.

"But we have the map piece, let's get outta here before Snively finds out!" Charmy said.

Shadow heard him, but was already out the door. He had no intention of leaving Rouge to that slimeball. He skated as fast as he could towards Snively's ship. Unfortunately, it had started to leave the docks. Determined to save Rouge, Shadow skated to the edge of one dock and leaped at the ship. At first he wasn't going to make it. But before he could fall into the water, he stabbed the side of the boat with his sword and climbed over the railing. "Let her go!" he barked at Snively who stood beside the robot that held Rouge.

Snively, as it turned out, found out that Rouge no longer had the piece of the map, and had been expecting Shadow to come. "Only if you surrender the map piece."

"If I refuse?"

Snively grinned evilly. "Then we will see how long it takes for a bat to drown."

Filled with rage, Shadow lunged at Snively and the two engaged in another sword fight. Snively swung his sword strategically, warning Shadow that he had improved. Shadow carefully dodged and blocked Snively's improved attacks, then swung his sword forcefully at him. Snively also dodged Shadow's attacks and cackled, "Giving up yet?"

"Never!" Shadow replied as he grabbed a rope and swung around Snively. He continued to tauntingly avoid Snively's attacks, and slowly got Snively to step near the edge of his boat.

"Surrender now, or you'll never know where your family is kept!" Snively challenged.

Shadow swung his sword once again, making Snively step back onto the edge. "I'll take my chances." Shadow smirked, then pushed Snively off.

"Noooooooo!" Snively cried as he plummeted into the sea. He tried to swim to the surface, but forgot that he was wearing his steel boots, and sank.

Shadow stared at the bubbles floating to the surface and he panted in exhaustion. He looked back at Rouge and saw that the robot had released her, seeing as it could not perform actions without instructions from Snively. Shadow walked over to the white bat and asked in concern, "Are you ok?"

Rouge nodded with a gentle smile and Shadow helped her up. The _Black Revenge_ came alongside Snively's boat, and Shadow carried Rouge onto his ship. "Well, I guess I better get you back before your wedding." he told her, trying to hide his reluctance.

Rouge looked down and didn't sound enthused when she said, "Oh, yeah. My wedding."

When they docked at the harbour, Shadow told his crew, "Wait here for me. I'll be right back after escorting Miss Rouge to the wedding hall." He walked along with Rouge in silence, purposely going slowly so that he would be with her longer. Rouge made no attempt to rush along. He secretly still thought about the dance they shared earlier and it made him sad to think he'd never be able to hold her again. Shadow suddenly wished he didn't have feelings for Rouge.

"Rouge!"

Shadow and Rouge looked up to see a red echidna standing a few meters away from them. "Knuckles." said Rouge, a little distraughtly.

"I'm so glad I found you! Now we can get married!" Knuckles then noticed Shadow, and got an angry look on his face. "So YOU'RE the one who kidnapped her!"

Shadow looked surprised. "What? No, I save-"

But Knuckles unsheathed his sword and growled, "How dare you even be _near_ my fiancée! I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" He charged at Shadow.

"Knuckles, no!" Rouge cried.

Shadow quickly drew his sword and managed to block Knuckles' attack. Shadow continued to swing his sword offensively at Knuckles, but he blocked them all easily. None of them were landing any hits, and Shadow was starting to feel tired. Instead of trying to attack, he resorted to defending attacks. As he did so, he noticed that Knuckles was gradually getting weaker. He kept blocking the echidna's attacks until his grip on his sword was loose enough. Shadow swung his sword and knocked Knuckles' out of his hand. Knuckles scrambled to get his sword back, but Shadow got in his way. "Now, just back away nice and easy." Shadow warned.

Knuckles growled, then ran away.

"He's probably gone to tell my father." Rouge frowned. She looked at Shadow. "You should get out of here now."

It was dark out, but Shadow could still see the sadness in Rouge's beautiful eyes, and hear it in her voice. He nodded. "Will you be all right?"

Rouge tried to smile. "Don't worry about me, Shadow. I just hope you find your family."

They stared at each other in silence. Shadow desperately wanted to tell her how he felt. "Rouge, I…" But that would complicate things. He wasn't even sure if Rouge felt the same way about him. Better to keep some secrets hidden. He sighed, "I wish you the best."

Rouge bit her lip, like she was trying to keep herself from crying. She hesitated, then quickly kissed Shadow on the cheek. "Good luck, Shadow." She turned around and flew off.

Shadow gazed after her and sighed. He felt his cheek where she had kissed him, then shook his head. _Time to forget about her,_ he thought glumly. But he knew in his heart he would always remember the one he first loved. Frowning, Shadow walked back to his ship.

"Hey, Captain Shadow! Ready to set sail?" Vector asked in excitement. "The map piece says…" he trailed off, noticing the crestfallen look on Shadow's face.

Tails looked at him in concern. "Captain, what's wrong?"

Shadow looked at his crew and shook his head. "Nothing. Let's get outta here already."

Charmy was about to press him, but Espio pulled him back, shaking his head knowingly.

Shadow half-heartedly helped prepare the ship for sailing. His crew didn't ask him anymore questions, and he guessed they knew what was wrong. The black hedgehog was grateful for their understanding, but he promised himself that he would be strong for them as they continue on their journey, no matter how heartbroken he would feel.

"Shadow!"

The familiar voice made Shadow's head snap up and his eyes widen. "Rouge?" He heard her call his name again and he turned around. Looking off the edge of the boat, he could see Rouge flying towards him. "Rouge!" He was so glad to see her again so soon, but it made him wonder why she was here.

Rouge was grinning as she flew onto the _Black Revenge_, almost right into Shadow. "I'm coming with you!" she told him excitedly.

Shadow couldn't believe what he had heard. He was so overcome by joy that he nearly forgot to speak. "Really? But what about your wedding?"

Rouge nodded. "I told my father everything and how I never wanted to marry Knuckles in the first place. He was…upset, to say the least. And he threatened to cut me off, but I told him love was more important to me than money. He finally understood and said I should follow my heart. And well..." She cupped Shadow's face in her hands and gazed into his eyes. "My heart is with you, Shadow."

Shadow felt his heart swell with happiness and he smiled. His first real smile in days. Rouge loved him after all. He put his arms around Rouge and kissed her lips, and his crew cheered with joy.

_End of Chapter 8_

**Sorry if the romance seemed a little rushed, but that's how it was in the game. Please review!**


	10. The Hurricane

**No, I still haven't forgotten about this fic. Life's been rough and it was hard to come up with good ideas for where the story should go next.**

Chapter Nine: The Hurricane

The next destination, according to the third map piece, was Lost Jungle. Shadow was getting a little irritated by the fact that the map took them all over the place instead of in a straight line, but he was just glad that he _had_ a map. It would normally take them about a week to cross the sea to get to Lost Jungle, but thanks to the upgrades Shadow gave to the _Black Revenge_ back in Grand Metropolis to make it more like Sonic's ship, he figured they'd arrive there in about three days.

Espio had outfitted Rouge with pirate clothes, and she was relieved she no longer had to wear that 'hideous dress', as she called it. The ship was short on cabins, but Shadow didn't mind having Rouge sleep in his. After all, they had agreed on getting married as soon as Shadow's quest to save his family was over. Yet, Shadow wondered how he was going to get the next map piece if Snively had already drowned.

Omega had checked the skies and warned Shadow, "The air pressure is dropping rapidly. We might be in for rough weather."

"I'm sure my upgraded ship is fast enough to get past the storm." Shadow responded without a care. "Just put it at full throttle."

"Affirmative, Captain." Omega replied, somewhat unsure.

Shadow went into his cabin, thinking that he would be undisturbed during the voyage. He realized he was wrong when a while later, the ship gave a sudden lurch that knocked Shadow off his bed. "Ugh! What the..." He got to his feet and tried to walk out of his cabin, but the ship kept rocking back and forth uncontrollably. He grumbled to himself, "My shipmates better not be roughhousing." Shadow opened his cabin door and Tails bumped right into him.

"Whoa! Captain!" Tails said in surprise. "I was about to come and tell you that we're caught in a hurricane!"

"What?" Shadow looked at the deck and saw his crew scrambling to control the ship as the rain poured on them and the wind and waves battered them around. His eyes met with Rouge's worried ones. Shadow glared at the angry sky overhead and told Tails, "Bring down the sails; we can't risk getting them torn."

Tails nodded and went to do as he was told.

Shadow grabbed hold of the wheel, which was spinning out of control, and tried to bring the ship back on course. He strained against the rough waters that splashed Shadow at every chance they got. "Omega! Let us know when we're on course!"

"I shall try." replied Omega, who was helping Vector and Espio dump water out of the ship.

Shadow remembered that Silver had psychic powers, so he turned to Silver and said, "See if you can control the storm!"

Silver nodded and held up his hands. He closed his eyes for concentration and the patterns on his palms glowed blue. The wind, waves, and rain started to slow down and everything started to become calmer.

Just then, something crashed into the ship and knocked everyone off their feet. Shadow still clung onto the steering wheel, but it was hard to keep it under control. The storm started up again and lashed sheets of rain against Shadow's face. He squeezed his eyes shut due to the amount of salt water that got into them.

"It's Chaos!" Tails gasped.

Shadow yelled over the roar of thunder, "I know, things are getting really hectic!"

"No, I mean that's _Chaos_!" Tails explained in fright.

Shadow managed to open his eyes and tried to ignore the sting from the salt. He saw everyone was staring in horror at something beside the ship, so he looked too. That's when he saw an enormous creature made of a blue gelatin-like substance with glowing, yellow eyes. Shadow became afraid as well, but he wasn't just going to do nothing about it.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Chris screamed. "What are we going to do? We're going to die!" He started to bawl really loudly.

Shadow smacked him. "Where's your dignity? We're going to fight that Chaos monster!"

Chaos roared and smashed its fists in the water, causing the _Black Revenge_ to nearly capsize.

"Fire the cannons!" ordered Shadow, still trying to steer.

Espio, Tails, and Omega went below to where the cannons were. They did their best to load and fire them. They missed several times because of the rough weather, but once they hit their target, the cannonball bounced right off of Chaos' body. "What?!"

Espio went onto the deck and told Shadow, "Captain! The cannons are useless! What should we do now?"

Shadow guessed that Chaos was made of a substance that was impervious to weapons. If that was true, then nothing they had could defeat him. They had to get away from Chaos as soon as possible. All of a sudden, Shadow heard a scream from Rouge. He gasped and turned around, just in time to see Chaos grab ahold of her. "Rouge!" Without thinking, Shadow left his post at the wheel to save Rouge. But the wheel spun out of control and caused the ship to turn sharply, thus making everyone lose their balance.

"Whoaaaaaaa!" Charmy screamed as a gust of wind blew him off the boat.

Vector quickly caught him by the leg. "Gotcha, kid!" He turned to Shadow. "What are you doin'? You need to steer the ship!"

Shadow struggled to his feet. Ignoring Vector, he leaped up to the crow's nest and lunged at Chaos' hand. He almost bounced off on contact, but he managed to hold on.

"Shadow!" Rouge cried warningly. "Look out!"

Shadow looked up and saw Chaos blast a beam of liquid at him. There was nowhere for him to jump to, and there was no time to jump at all. Shadow braced himself for the attack...but it never came. "Huh?" He opened his eyes and saw the beam of liquid frozen only inches from his face. He glanced down at the deck and saw Silver focusing his energy on Chaos.

"I've got him immobilized! Now's your chance!" Silver told him.

Without wasting a second, Shadow grabbed Rouge and leaped for the ship. However, he fell short and started to fall to the water. But Rouge opened her wings and carried Shadow onto the ship's deck. Shadow caught his breath. "Thanks, Rouge."

Rouge nodded, panting. She and Shadow saw Silver strike Chaos with a psychic beam, pushing him away from the _Black Revenge_.

Chaos roared angrily, then leaped into the air. At first, everyone thought that he would crash down onto the ship, but Chaos just dove into the water. This resulted in a giant wave that capsized the _Black Revenge_ and flung everyone into the sea.

_End of Chapter Nine_

**Hopefully the next chapter won't take so long to post. In the meantime, please review.**


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